THE WEISS CHRONICLES

I started to get nausea about 45 minutes into the procedure (which takes about 75 minutes).

The Red Cross people unhooked me.

I didn't have tremors so it wasn't a lack of calcium. Perhaps I didn't eat enough for breakfast. I'll try that next time but if I have another bad time, it will be the end of my apheresis experiences.

posted by Martin Weiss # 4:24 PM

Monday, January 28, 2013

All the Soda you can drink - 3 prices

I was shopping at Target today. Since I was buying kitchen stuff, I went in the top floor. The first thing there is the Target Cafe.

They have three prices for soda. Small (12 ounces) is $1.19. Medium (16 ounces) is $1.39 and large (24 ounces) is $1.69. However, they also have a sign that says 'free refills'.

What this means is that you can drink an unlimited amount for one price and the only difference is the size of the cup you get.

I asked the counter person if you have to stay in the cafe to be eligible for the free refill. She said, "No. You can shop and then come back and refill".

posted by Martin Weiss # 3:47 PM

Monday, January 21, 2013

Keys Lost Keys Found

About a week ago, Beth lost her keys on the way to attendance at a downtown Tel Aviv event. This was both the house, and work and car keys as well as a disc containing some e-files.

One of the things on the key was 'Sheepie', a mini stuffed animal.

It turned out this helped in the ID and later recovery of the keys. They were turned in to a bus driver and the bus driver remembered the distinctive Sheepie.

So one week later, Beth got her keys back.

posted by Martin Weiss # 2:34 PM

Sunday, January 13, 2013

Endoscopies

Ann and I both had endoscopic exams on Dec 28.

Both of us had a colonoscopy and I had an esophaguscopy as well.

The worst thing about this is, of course, the preparation the previous day. However, a part of the exam is that the organs to be examined are filled with air. This makes for gas pains post-exam.

I had no polyps in either organ. Ann had (per the pathology report received last week) 3 small polyps in her colon which turned out to be adenomas which are not cancerous but in about 10% of cases adenomas will grow into cancer. Anyway, the bottom line here is she will have to have another endoscopy of the colon in 3 to 5 years and I won't have one for 10 years.

The image is from WebMD. It shows a polyp being removed.

posted by Martin Weiss # 2:55 PM

Wednesday, January 09, 2013

Citrate Reaction Averted

I was at the apheresis center today and did NOT suffer a citrate reaction.

As noted, in the Dec 12, 2012 post one of the steps taken in apheresis is to pump citrate into blood before returning it to the donor (to prevent clotting).

As may be inferred from the second image, this step is not generally known (the illustration leaves it out). The citrate binds with calcium in the blood and, apparently in my case,on Dec 12, caused me to shake and get nausea and dizziness.

So anyway, starting a few days ago I increased by calcium intake by drinking milk and having cream cheese (shown in first image) as a 'snack'.

No citrate reaction today.

posted by Martin Weiss # 12:52 PM

Tuesday, January 08, 2013

Ann's Cataract Surgery - Left Eye

The left eye surgery, which was Jan 7, actually went even better than the work on the right eye.

1. The operation went quicker (only about 25 minutes from the time Ann entered the treatment area to the time she sat up post-op; the actual operation probably took less than 10 minutes).

2. The initial estimate of vision in the left eye is 20-20 (as opposed to an estimate of 20-25 in the right eye).

Of course, we can expect vision to decay a bit in a few years.

posted by Martin Weiss # 7:46 PM

Sunday, January 06, 2013

George's Journeys for a Flu Shot

G dedicated several days to getting a flu shot. Typically, he would call up a store, find they had the vaccine, drive there and then

- they would have a long line and wouldn't be able to take him by closing time

- they had run out of the vaccine

- the information he had been given about them having the vaccine was wrong

He put on about 150 miles driving places and finally got the vaccine at a Walgreen's in Herndon, VA after having first gone to the Walgreen's in Reston, VA then going the wrong way on VA Route 606 and going to Fairfax instead of Herndon. The image is of the routes of another famous explorer who had problems finding where he wanted to.

posted by Martin Weiss # 11:07 PM

Tuesday, January 01, 2013

Restaurant Experience in Dream

I had a dream that we (Ann and I) were going to a new restaurant. It was in our neighborhood (a block away from our house is a Devilwood St). Apparently, it was kosher too because other Jews who generally only eat at kosher places were there before us.

Satan, in full dress cloak, horns, pitchfork and claw hoofs greeted us at the door and gave us menus.I think it was a meat restaurant and that we were going to have to wait for a table.

Then I woke up.

the guy with green shirt is saying, "You know that it's just a novelty fork..."

posted by Martin Weiss # 12:04 AM